Blindfolded Innocence #1.5 - The Diary of Brad De Luca

[Warning: This review contains a minor spoiler.]

THE DIARY OF BRAD DE LUCA is a brief and entertaining companion piece to BLINDFOLDED INNOCENCE. It's a gift to readers who truly savored BI, not a stand-alone work. As the summary states, it's "meant to complement, and be read after, Blindfolded Innocence."

This novella highlights and explores some of the juicier bits of BI from Brad's diabolical perspective. It begins to succeed in humanizing Brad, making him a more sympathetic character. Then, the guy goes and screws an anonymous blond while still in desperate pursuit of Julia. That was incredibly frustrating. (Just when I was starting to like him a little!)

I enjoyed reading The Diary of Brad DeLuca. Brad's dedicated POV helped me to appreciate and understand him better. I'll be curious to see if more of Brad's perspective, like in this novella, will be incorporated into the expanded version of Blindfolded Innocence to be released in 2014 by Harlequin. (One can hope!)

Complimentary copy courtesy of Patchwork Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Star Rating: 4 stars

Heat Rating: Hot!

This was a great peek inside Brad's head during the first book Blindfolded Innocence! Alessandra Torre set up this short novella so that the readers can get a glimpse into what was going through Brad's mind and get a handle on some of his intentions toward Julia. The Diary of Brad De Luca also gives the reader a nice refresh of the story from Blindfolded Innocence as we get ready for the release of Masked Innocence in February of 2014.

I love the writing of Alessandra Torre and really enjoyed this short, fast paced novella. I read Blindfolded Innocence over a year ago so it was a great trip down memory lane while at the same time getting more insight to the yummy and mysterious Brad De Luca! Brad is definitely a character I would love to get to know up close and personally. You get just a taste of heat (not the usual Kindle melting heat) and a new craving for more of Brad and Julia!

I can't wait until Masked Innocence is released and I can dive back into this story and see what happens next! Alessandra Torre is one of my "must read all her books" authors and this taste of Brad doesn't disappoint, it just pumps me up for more! If you have read Blindfolded Innocence, then The Diary of Brad De Luca is a great fast read for you to whet your appetite while you wait for more! Definitely worth that 1-click!

Though exquisitely written, this piece is really a companion piece for the book Blindfolded Innocence, and could serve as that or as an introduction to the author. Ms. Torres has created an intriguing world populated by complex characters. This novella gives the reader a glimpse inside Brad's (the lead from Blindfolded Innocence) mind. It isn't often that I find a female author that can do justice to the voice of a man, but Alessandra Torre shows talent in her work. Her characters are so complete as to jump off the page, the novella becomes a conversation; a lover telling a friend his thoughts and feelings embarking on a journey. You could read this short story first, but I would recommend the full length novel be read first. Based on this sample of Ms. Torre's writing, I will definitely seek out her backlist.
*I received my copy from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review

This is a companion piece to Blindfolded Innocence so if you haven't read that book do so now before reading this novella. That being said it was really amazing to see certain moments in the Blindfolded Innocence book through Brad's eyes. It helped me to understand the motivations that I had a hard time understanding in Blindfolded. Seeing the struggle going on in Brad's head where he was getting in deeper and deeper with Julia and denying it to himself was really interesting to see. Julia not reacting the way he thought she would really threw Brad for a loop. I went back to read Blindfolded Innocence and it really put so many things into perspective as I read the book again (the scene at the strip club and the scene when Julia went to confront Brad at this house for example). Loved that Alessandra gave us a little something to tide us over until the second book in the series, "Masked Innocence" is released. You can never get too much of Brad De Luca as far as I am concerned!!!

I was fortunate to have gotten an advance reader copy (ARC) from the author. It's wonderful when authors are able to switch up the point of view of their stories. I've always enjoyed when authors allow us to view the other unknown parts of a story from the other main character's point of view. I will do my best to keep any spoilers from this review.

The Diary of Brad De Luca was short and albeit a quick read since I was familiar with the story and characters. I understand that Ms. Torre released this short story to TRY and satisfy her ravenous fans until February 2014 for the second part of Julia and Brad's affair. Alessandra, I'm sorry to say that this did nothing to help satisfy the need to know what happens next between Julia and Brad.

Being able to read what went through Brad's mind as he pursed Julia did help with understanding his character better. As a fan of "Blindfolded Innocence" (the beginning of Julia and Brad) this did explain some of the lingering questions to certain actions of Brad. I did enjoy to know that even though he chose Todd as an intern and knew the kid would be a cocky pain in the ass, he didn't appreciate him being overly confident starting that first day.

Knowing that from the moment Brad met Julia despite her appearance something about her sparked his interest was awesome. Seeing inside Brad's thoughts allows the reader to know that Brad does not just see Julia as a piece of meat or another notch to add to his post. She challenges everything and the very persona he created to keep a women like her out of his life. Brad's heart and mind are constantly at war with what he knows and want he needs. From this little peek into the complex man that is Brad De Luca he may have just found the woman of his dreams that he never thought existed.

This short story does help readers to get a better understand of what will happen in the sequel "Masked Innocence." In some of the blurbs I've read of what will happen in "Masked Innocence" Brad's past that Julia has no idea about is another thing that will threaten their hidden relationship.

This one is quite a bit different than Blindfolded Innocence. I guess my biggest problem with this novella is I didn't understand it's purpose at all. I really seemed to me that it was a bit of random thoughts/cut outs of scenes that didn't really add to the series. There weren't any story-enhancing revelations or plot twists. The one word that came to mind when I finished it was "Why?" I feel bad about saying that because I absolutely LOVED Blindfolded Innocence. It just seem rushed and without direction.

The author provided me with an advance copy of this book so that I may provide an honest review...
Where do I begin with Brad, except where I ended with him in BI (which I highly recommend reading prior to this book, or you'll be lost). He had a tremendous ability to piss me off, which just made him a stronger alpha male, and I was left wanting and confused with the end of BI, but his Diary has helped to alleviate some of the confusion and amplified the wanting. It explains his motivation and thoughts behind his actions, and provides insight into his feelings for Julia, which I needed in order to move on to the sequel to BI and still feel positive about their relationship. Although it is a short read, and more of a teaser to the fans, I highly recommend reading this book just to get a dose of Brad to last you until BI2 is released!

Reading this incredibly sexy story told from Brad's POV was just what I needed to keep me satisfied until the next full length book Masked Innocence is released in February. The way Brad views Julia; her innocence, beauty, and feisty side brought a whole new level to the story while giving an honest perspective on how he feels about relationships.

I can't wait to see how the story develops and what is next for Brad and Julia.

***Remember this is a companion novella so be sure to read the full length novel Blindfolded Innocence (Innocence, #1) first!!!

ARC provided for honest review:

Nice little refresher course to tide you over until part two. I like hearing his side of things. He is a possessive man. Still, well written characters and story.